Ms Truss today told Mr Lavrov that an invasion of Ukraine by Russia would have “massive consequences and carry severe costs”. Meanwhile, Russia and its ally Belarus have started 10 days of joint military drill. While the official said it was hard to say these were all strategically related, it showed that there was an issue on Eastern Europe's eastern flank.
The devastation was felt most acutely in Kharkiv, where an apartment block was hit, killing two people, and injuring 35 residents. Earlier today, a Russian official said air defences had thwarted a drone attack on the Slavneft-YANOS oil refinery in the city of Yaroslavl. A man was also killed in shelling outside the major north-eastern city of Kharkiv. Keir Giles, a senior consulting fellow in the Russia and Eurasia programme at Chatham House, said it is possible that Russia has already sabotaged UK infrastructure at sea.
Russia-Ukraine war: attacks on Russian enlistment offices signal dissatisfaction with war, says UK – as it happened
BBC correspondents heard loud bangs in the capital Kyiv, as well as Kramatorsk in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine. Those standing against Mr Putin in the upcoming election, including anti-war candidate Boris Nadezhdin, have until Wednesday to gather the required number of supporters' signatures to back their campaigns. Balazs Orban, chief political aide to the prime minister, said Hungary sent a proposal to the EU over the weekend showing it was open to using the budget for the aid package if other "caveats" were added.
Some migrants might stay in neighbouring Poland and eastern European countries, but some might head further west and eventually end up in the UK. https://euronewstop.co.uk/why-isnt-nato-sending-troops-to-ukraine.html wants Nato to make a legally binding promise that Ukraine will never become a member. It also wants Nato to withdraw its forces from most Eastern European countries. It is called self-determination, and perhaps the most important aspect of this principle is that borders cannot be changed by invading armies.
BBC News Services
The intensity, regularity and indiscriminate nature of Russia’s attacks may violate international humanitarian law, is extremely concerning and must stop. It is regrettable - and sadly predictable - that we must gather today to condemn Russia’s latest wave of aerial attacks against the Ukrainian people. Russian forces attacked eight communities in the Sumy oblast overnight, causing more than 24 explosions, the Sumy regional military administration said. Russian air defence shot down a Ukrainian drone over the Bryansk oblast today, regional governor Alexander Bogomaz said on Telegram. In Kyiv, relatives of Ukrainian service personnel are calling on the government to set a time limit on how their loved ones should serve in the military.
- Not the full-scale war that has bombed civilians across Ukraine and left more than 13 million either as refugees abroad or displaced inside their own country.
- In the Baltic republic of Estonia, which borders Russia, Prime Minister Kaja Kallas said a number of Nato allies that shared borders with Russia had agreed to launch consultations under Nato's Article 4.
- Ukraine's position is that Russian troops must pull back beyond Ukraine's internationally recognised borders for there to be peace.
- Anyone exposed within a 6.8-mile radius of the impact would almost certainly suffer third-degree burns, while hundreds of thousands would be likely to die due to radiation fallout.
- To understand the situation though, it’s important to go back a few years.
- My colleague Luke Harding in Kyiv is reporting that five people who allegedly tried to steal nearly $40m (£31m) that was supposed to be used to buy shells for the Ukrainian military have been arrested.
Then Ukrainian forces said Russian military vehicles had crossed the border near Kharkiv in the north, Luhansk in the east, Russian-annexed Crimea in the south and from Belarus too. Belarus's authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko said his country's military were not involved but could be if needed. It's promising to deploy British forces to eastern European members of the Nato military alliance if Russian troops cross Ukraine's borders. Now Russia have confirmed plans to invade Ukraine, although Vladimir Putin has said he has no plans to "occupy" the country, various states have confirmed that Russia will face harsh sanctions.
"Russia's widespread aggression is a threat to the entire world and to all Nato countries," she said. Several neighbouring countries have begun preparations to take in a large number of refugees. Moldova alone said more than 4,000 people had come over the border from Ukraine. While Russia’s forces are strong they would be dwarfed by Nato’s collective power, making touching a Nato member incredibly risky. Mr Putin has frequently warned other countries against intervening in Ukraine.
- If war broke out in Ukraine and Russian forces occupied large swathes of the country, many civilians might flee.
- Intelligence sources claim their aim is to lay the groundwork for sabotage against rival countries, including the UK, ensuring Russia is well positioned to inflict strategic blows in future conflicts.
- Since the invasion began in the early hours of Thursday, 194 Ukrainians - including 57 civilians - have been killed, Armed Forces Minister James Heappey said.
- The prime minister also sought to reassure the British public, pledging to do "everything to keep our country safe" and work with allies "for however long it takes" to restore Ukraine's sovereignty and independence.
- He said these would more likely be smaller nuclear weapons known as tactical nuclear weapons, used within Ukraine.